Cleaning mechanism for horse-rakes.



W. WEAVER. CLEANING MECHANISM FOR HORSE RAKES. APPLICATION FILED APR.19, 1910.

994,622. Patented June 6,1911.

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W. WEAVER. CLEANING MECHANISM FOR HORSE RAKES.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 19, 1910.

Patented June 6, 1911.

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WILLIAM WEAVER,

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0F RIVERTON, UTAH.

CLEANING MECHANISM FOR HORSE-RAKES.

. Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented June 6, 1911.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, IVILLIAM WEAVER, a citizen of the United States,residing at Riverton, in the county of Salt Lake and State of Utah, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Cleaning Mechanism forHorse-Rakes, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to cleaning mechanism for horse rakes.

It has for its object the providing of an attachment for a hay rakewhich, when the rake is raised for dumping, will compress the bundle ofhay contained thereon so that one man may lift it.

Other objects and advantages will be apparent from the followingdescription, and it will be understood that changes in the specificstructure shown and described may be made within the scope of the claimwithout departing from the spirit of the invention.

In the drawings, Figure 1 is a top plan view of my rake cleaningmechanism, Fig. 2 is a sectional view along the line 22 of Fig. 1, andFig. 3 is a view of Fig. 2, the rake being raised.

My attachment may be placed on a horse rake of any approved type, themechanism of such horse rake being no part of my invention is notparticularly shown and described.

In the drawings: 1 represents the shafts, 2 the connecting beam thereof,8 the main frame which may be of angle iron or other suitable materialand 4 the wheels of an ordinary horse rake adapted to carry my improvedcleaning mechanism. Transverse the main frame and revolubly mountedtherein is the shaft 5, which carries the rearwardly pointed anddownwardly curved rake teeth 6. Secured to the shaft 5 is the foot lever6, so positioned on the shaft as to be in an upright position when theteeth are lowered, and adapted to be depressed in the direction of thearrow by a driver in the seat 7. A lug 8 is secured to the frame and isso placed as to limit the upward movement of the lever 6 so as to leavethe rake teeth in the most advantageous position.

My rake cleaning mechanism consists of a plurality of parallelhorizontal cleaning fingers 9, which pass between the rake teeth atsuitable intervals, and extend rearwardly of the rake teeth a distancesufficient to allow the latter in their upward sweep to remain entirelyforward of the extremities of the cleaning fingers. The cleaning fingersare kept in parallel spaced relation by two spaced parallel cross bars10 and 11, which are riveted to the cleaning fingers at the points wherethey intersect. The cross bar 10 is placed at the forward end of thecleaning fingers, and the cross bar 11 a short dis tance rearwardlythereof. Secured to the shafts are the two pendent bracket arms 12,secured to the ends of which is the cross bar 10.

Carried centrally of the frame there are transversely spaced studs 25from which are suspended hangers 18, connected to the cross bar 11,whereby the cleaning fingers are held rigidly in a substantiallyhorizontal position. The studs 25 project forwardly, and are providedwith an angularly recessed foot adapted to be easily secured upon therake frame in any customary manner, as by bolts, and the outer ends ofthe studs are transversely apertured, to receive bolts 26 securing thehangers 18.

A catch 23 is provided on the frame 3 so that the lever 6 may be lockeddown when the rake is not in use; and a spring 24 is disposed betweenthe lever and the main frame to assist in raising the lever andresiliently hold the rake teeth adjacent the ground.

In the operation of the mechanism, when a rake full of hay is gatheredand it is desired to dump it, the lever 6 is depressed by the operator;this rotates the shaft 5,

raising the rake teeth 6, said teeth working upward through the fingers9 which efiectually remove the hay from the teeth.

In heavy hay crops a contrivance of this character would be veryvaluable as the bunches of hay are not so bulky and may be easilyhandled by one man.

This attachment may be mounted on any style of horse rake with a fewslight changes in structure, and may be cheaply and easlly manufactured,and will be efficient in operation.

It will be noted that the bracket arms 12 and the hangers 18 projectupwardly beyond .the shafts and studs respectively, and have a series oflongitudinally spaced perforations therethrough, the bracket arms be1ngsecured to the shaft by the engagement of a suitable pivot pintherethrough, and the hangers being similarly secured to the studs. Whendesired, these arms and hangers may be adjusted vertically to disposethe cleaning fingers at various heights with respect to the tangs of therake, in order to make the device adjustable to use with variousqualities of hay.

hat is claimed is:

A horse rake comprising, drive wheels, a shaft supported by said drivewheels m frame supported by said shaft, a bar extending transversely ofsaid frame, a seat supported on said bar, a plurality of curved teethrotatably mounted upon said shaft, a lever positioned on said shaft toraise and lower said teeth, means for locking said teeth in a loweredposition, a second frame arranged below the first mentioned frame,

said frame consisting of a plurality of resilient fingers extendingbetween the teeth of the rake, a pair of transversely arranged barsconnecting said fingers, a plurality of curved members adapted tosupport said frame, said members being adjustably connected to one ofsaid transverse bars, and an adjustable connection between the othertransverse bar and the shafts of the rake.

In testimony whereof I affix my signature, in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM l/VEAVER. WVitnesses l/VM. Homes, JOHN HANSEN.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressingthe Commissioner of Patents, Washington, D. C.

